. A dictionary of birds . ntly pass over a few miles of seamth ease. Indeed proof of their roamingdisposition is afforded by the fact that thebird described by Lesson {Voy. Coquille, 703) as Aledhelia urvillii, but now con-sidered to be the young of M. freycineti, flewon board his ship when more than two milesfrom the nearest land (Gueb6), in an ex-hausted state, it is true, but that may beattributed to its extreme youth. The speciesof Megapodius are about the size of smallFowls, the head generally crested, the tailvery short, the feet enormously large, and, mth the exception ofM. toal
. A dictionary of birds . ntly pass over a few miles of seamth ease. Indeed proof of their roamingdisposition is afforded by the fact that thebird described by Lesson {Voy. Coquille, 703) as Aledhelia urvillii, but now con-sidered to be the young of M. freycineti, flewon board his ship when more than two milesfrom the nearest land (Gueb6), in an ex-hausted state, it is true, but that may beattributed to its extreme youth. The speciesof Megapodius are about the size of smallFowls, the head generally crested, the tailvery short, the feet enormously large, and, mth the exception ofM. toallacii {Proc. Zool. Soc. 1860, Aves, pi. 171) from the Moluccas,all have a sombre plumage. The extraordinary habit possessed by the Megapodes generally ofrelieving themselves of the duty of incubation, as before mentioned,—a habit which originally attracted the attention of travellers,Avhose stories were on that very account discredited,—as Avell as thehighly developed condition of the young at birth, has been so fully. Megapodius freycineti.(After Swaiason.) ^ M. cumingi occurs on Labuan and other islands off the north coast ofBorneo, and it is recorded [Proc. Zool. Soc. 1881, p. 800) from Sandakan, butconfirmation of the statement is desirable. MEGG Y—MERGANSER 543 described/ and so often repeated by other writers, as to be verycommonly known, and here there seems no necessity to enter intofurther details concerning it, IMEGGY, properly an abbreviation of Margaret, a nickname ofthe Whitethroat ; but perhaps a corruption of Muggy. MEGISTANES, Vieillots name in 1816 {Analyse, p. 53) for agroup containing the four genera of Eatite birds then known,Stridhio, Rhea, Casuarms, and Dromseus, and since applied [ Mag. N. H. ser. 4, xx. p. 500) to the Order composed of the twolast (Cassowary, Emeu). MELANISM (adj. melanistic) the abnormal occurrence ofblack or very dark coloured plumage (see Colour, p. 99, andHeterochrosis, p. 420). MERGANSER, a word originating with Gesner {H
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Keywords: ., bookauthorlyde, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectbirds
